Vacuum floor mopper



March 15; 1932. w.-s. FINNELL 1 VACUUM FLOOR MOPPER Filed Dec. 26, 19283 Sheets-Sheet March 15, 1932 w s FlNNELL 1,849,663

VACUUM FLOOR MOPPER Filed Dec. 26, 1928 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Mafch 15, 1932.

Filed Dec. 26, 1928 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 Patented Mar. 15, 1932 WALTER S.I'INNELL, OF ELKHABT, INDIANA VACUUM ILQOB HOPPER Application filedDecember 26, 1828. Serial No. 328,888.

My invention relates generally to floor mop-- ping apparatus and has todo especially with a vacuum apparatus which is adapted for propulsionover the floor to collect and remove soil (dirt, water, etc.) therefrom.

One of the objects of my invention is to provide an improved, compactand light weight machine of the foregoing character which is simple,inexpensive, efiicient and easily handled and which is well suited foruse in the mopping of the floors of ofiice, public buildings,manufacturing plants as well as for use in the home where relativelysmall floor spaces are to be cleaned.

Another object is to provide a vacuum mopper which may be moved quicklyabout the floor and beneath objects thereon, such mopper including asqueegee for collecting the S011 upon the floor and a relatively largevacuum chamber in communication with the squeegee for effecting andinsuring a uniform suction at the squeegee for removing the collectedsoil from the floor, the vacuum chamber also serving as a receptacle forthe dirt, water, etc. removed from the floor.

A further object is to provide an improved form of squeegee which isadapted to more easily and positively direct and assist in deliveringthe soil (dirt, water, etc.) toward the receiving receptacle.

Still another object is to provide means for controlling theeffectiveness of the vacuum at the squeegee mouth so as to insure aproper and uniform flow, of the soil from the floor and squeegee intothe soil receptacle.

A further object is to provide an improved wheeled support for saidchamber and squeegee for propelling the same along the floor as a unit,such support including yieldable means which automatically positions thesqueegee relative to the floor surface to prevent grabbing or fdiggingin of the same as the apparatus is moved along the floor in diflerentangular positions. This arrangement gives the apparatus a balance andinsures the proper tension on the rubber squeegee so that the operatormay mop the floor by moving the apparatus back and forth with one handwithout changing the mopping effectiveness of the device due to the backand forth, arcuate-path swinging movement of the operators arm.

Additional objects are to provide means for preventing thevacuum-producing means from abnormally affecting the flow of the dlrt,water, etc. into the vacuum chamber and for preventing the discharge ofthe dirt,

water, etc. from such chamber to atmosphere by such vacuum-producingmeans; and to provide convenient, improved means for so draining thevacuum chamber without disassembly of any of the parts of the machine.

Other objects and advantages will become apparent as this descriptionprogresses and by reference to the drawings wherein,

Figure 1 is a side view, partially in section, of one form of apparatusembodying my in-. vention, and showing the same in one position which itmay assume during the mopping of the floor;

Fig. 2 is a transverse section taken substantially on line-22 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a transverse section taken substantially on line 3-3015 Fig.1;

Fig. 4 is a transverse sectiontaken substantially o'n line 4- 1 of Fig.1;

Fig. 5 is a transverse section taken substantiallyon line 55 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 6 is an enlarged rear elevational view of the lower rear portion ofthe structure so shown in Fig. 1; p

Fig. 7 is an 'elevational view of the opposite side of the structureshown in Fi 6;

Fig. 8 is a bottom plan view of t e squeegee structure shown in Figs. 6and 7;

Fig. 9 is a separated, bottom plan view of the squeegee nozzle; and

Fig. 10 is an enlarged vertical section taken through the lower part ofthe structure shown in Fig. 1.

, With particular reference to the form shown in the drawings, theapparatus in eludes generally a squeegee unit, a combined vacuum chamberand S011 receptacle, and an exhauster, all of which are yieldinglymounted upon a wheeled support for propulsion over the floor.

The sequeegee unit includes a nozzle 15 (Figs. 7 and 9), the frontwall15 of which" is practically straight and its back wall 15 isuniformly bowed from end to end to provide a flared nozzle mouth 16. Thenozzle back wall 15 supports a squeegee 17 which is backed and supportedby a flexible strip 18 and metal strip 19 held in place by a pluralityof screw bolts 20 which engage threaded openings in the nozzle wall. Thenozzle walls 15 and 15 are so shaped and spaced that the nozzle chamberis slightly wider at the bottom, and its inner top wall surface tapersinwardly and upwardly from the opposite ends toward the nozzle outlet 15in the nozzle back wall 15". The nozzle outlet is in directcommunication with the hollow nipple 21 to which the receptacle 22 isconnected. The shape of the nozzle aids in the collection and removal ofthe dirt, water, etc., from the floor.

The receptacle 22 not only receives the soil removed from the fioor, butalso serves as a vacuum chamber for insuring a uniform suction at thesqueegee nozzle. Specifically, this receptacle is connected to thesqueegee nipple 21 by means of a threaded boss 23 in its lower removablehead 24 (Figs. 1 and 10) The in terior of the receptacle is connected tothe squeegee nozzle by a conduit 25, the lower end of which is mountedin the nipple 21. Its upper or inner end extends toward and near theupper end of the receptacle and is turned over toward one side wall .ofthe receptacle (Figs. 1, 2 and 4). A removable head 26 is mounted uponthe upper end of the receptacle and this head has a hollow boss 27 whichsupports an exhauster which, in this instance, takes the form of anelectrically operated exhaust fan 28. This exhaust fan is incommunication with the interior of the receptacle through the head boss27 and a conduit 29 carried by the upper head. This conduit may take theform of a cored passage, or otherwise, and its inlet 29 (Figs. 1, 2 and3) is at the side of the receptacle opposite the outlet of conduit 25.By this arrangement, with the exhaust device 28 in operation, water,dirt, etc. will not be drawn into the exhaust conduit 29, and thematerial passing through the conduit 25 into the receptacle will not bedisturbed materially by the exhausting means. The water, dirt and airdischarged from the inlet soil pipe 25 will be separated, the water anddirt falling toward the bottom of the receptacle while the air isexhausted through the passage 29 and fan exhaust 28.

It will be appreciated that as the fan 28 is operated to exhaust the airfrom the receptacle 22, a partial vacuum is produced in the latter,which provides, through the conduit 25, an effective suction at themouth 16 of the squeegee nozzle. Due to the comparatively large-volumereceptacle the suction effect at the nozzle is substantially uniformwhich avoids floor-streaking and uneven mopping action. To insure aneffective lift suction at the nozzle and a positive flow of thecollected floor soil into the receptacle 22, I control the flow of airto the squeegee nozzle by restricting the same within certain limits,and to that end I provide the followin A flexible flap 30 formedpreferably of ru her is mounted upon the lower edge of the nozzle frontwall 15 by means of metal strip 31 and screw bolts 32. This flap is oflesser width than the squeegee 17 so that it will not not engage thefloor surface in the operative position of the apparatus (Figs. 1 and10), but it may be sufiiciently wide to contact with or nearly contactwith the upper surface of the film of dirt and water which may be on thefloor so that, with the mopping apparatus in certain positions, itslower edge forms a seal with the material being mopped. Such anozzle-sealed condition, wlth no air inlet to the nozzle, unless takencare of, would tend to affect the nozzle suction action in such a waythat the water and dirt would not be uniformly lifted and sucked intothe receptacle. To take care of this condition, the front flap 30 isprovided with a plurality of air inlets 33 (Fig. 7) which extend,referably (but not necessarily) from the ottom of the flap to the topthereof and which are open at all times to permit a predetermined amountof air to be sucked into the squeegee nozzle to satisfy the suction andmaterial flow requirements. While I have shown these openings asV-shaped, it will be understood that their shape may be varied asdesired and their number and size may also be varied as the conditionsrequire, without departing from my invention, but they should always' besuch that, with or without the front flap 30 sealed against the materialon the floor, the total air inlet to the nozzle will fall within a rangewhich will not destroy the effectiveness of the suction lift.

The receptacle 22 is provided with a drain which insures easy and quickdraining of the same. Specifically, the bottom head 24 is provided withan opening 34 (Fig. 10) providing a valve seat and this head has anexterior, hollow, curved drain nozzle 35 which is in communication withthe opening 34, such nozzle being shaped to discharge a substan tiallyvertical stream when the apparatus is in a tilted position such as shownin Fig. 1. The drain is controlled by a manually operated unit whichincludes a handle 36 (Fig. 1) having a rod extension 37 which carries avalve 38 at its inner or lower end. This rod extension is slidinglysupported and guided in the receptacle by a sleeve 39 carried by theupper head 26, and it is yieldingly held dowr to seat the valve in theopening 34 by a spring 40 confined between the lower end of the guidesleeve 39 and a stop 41 on the extension 37. Obviously, upward movementof the handle 36 will unseat the valve 38 to drain the receptaclethrough the drain nozzle 35. When the handle is released, the valve willbe closed by the action of the .spring 40. If desired, the valve 38 mabe held open by raising the handle 36 an until its shank 36 rests uponthe top of the receptacle head 26. g I

The wheeled support for the apparatus takes the form of a pair of wheels42 mounted upon an axle 43 to the rear of the squeegee. It will beappreciated, that, if this support were rigidly connected to theremainder of the structure, the squeegee would tend to dig in or grab asthe machine is moved along the floor and as the receptacle is tiltedupwardly from the position of say Fig. 1.

This is articularly true where rou h spots in the fi eor are encounteredand were the operator moves the machine back and forth with his one handgrasping the handle 44, during which movement the handle 44 is raisedand lowered somewhat. To provide against the foregoing grabbing and thelike, conditions (which would result in floorstreaking and unevenmopping) the receptacle and squeegee unit is mounted upon the wheels 42by yielding means which is likewise located to the rear of the squeegee.More particularly, I provide a air of U- shaped spring straps 45 each ofwhich has one end fastened to the rear of the squeegee nozzle by screws45 (Fig. 6) and the other end looped around the wheel axle 43 -with theU- bow projecting upwardly. Withthis form of support, there is arelative yielding action between the wheels and the ueegee unit when thelatter tends to grab an resists forward movement of the same, and thisyielding action is effective to release the squeegee 17 and maintainsubstantially a predetermined relationship between the squeegee andfloor regardless of the varying tilting posi tion of the receptacle 22and handle 44. It has been found by practical demonstration that the twowheels mounted in this manner give the machine, as a whole, a balanceand the yielding spring connectors to the rear of the squeegee providethat certain desired ten-' sion on the rubber squeegee which isnecessary for accurate and complete mopping. It has also been foundthat, in this form of apparatus, such advantages are not gained if theyieldable supports are mounted forwardly of the squeegee.

The handle 44 is mounted for slip adjustment upon the receptacle 27 bythe clamp 46. y loosening the clamp screw 46, the handle may be adjustedlongitudinally of the receptacle 22 to better accommodate the apparatusto persons of different heights, and to further insure proper seating ofthe squeegee 17 upon the floor.

In operation, the electric cord 47 is connected to any suitable electricsource and the operation of the motor-driven fan 28 is controlled by aswitch 48 on the handle 44 and located convenient to the handgrip 44.The

rotating the samewardlyto the desiredextent.' This mopping structure iswell adapted to follow a scrubblng machine along the floor to completethe floor cleaning 0 eration, but not necessarily so, because the oormay first be scrubbed by hand or otherwise; As the machine is movedalong, the squeegee collects the soil and its bowed shape causes thesoil to collect and build up at the center beneath the nozzle outlet 0min 20. The suction at the squeegee nozz e setting up air friction dragconditions at the squeegee and nozzle b the air flowin into the squeegeeand nozz e,coupled witd the sha e of such nozzle, as above described,causes inflowing air and the collected water and dirt to rise in the,squeegee nozzle and through the outlet conduit 25 into the receptacle22-.-..The converging of the walls of the nozzle chamber 16 toward thenozzle outlet 15 sets up an increased velccity condition at the outlet15 which, coupled with proximity of the bottom of such outlet to thefloor surface, insures a positive uniform drag and flow movement of thematerial into the receptacle 22.

parts may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of myinvention as defined in the claims which follow.

I claim: 7

1. A mopping machine which comprises a unit consisting of a receptacle,a handle connected to one end of said receptacle, a nozzle connected tothe other end of said receptacle, and a flexible floor-contactingsqueegee member carried by said nozzle; and supporting means for saidunit consisting of a pair of wheels connected by an axle, and a pair ofU-shaped spring members each of which is disposed in inverted conditionwith one end fixedly connected to said nozzle and its ether endpivotally secured to said axle adjacent one of said wheels, thedownwardlydepending U-legs of each spring member be ing adapted to flextoward and from each other for relative adjustment of said wheels andsaid unit with respect to each other and the floor surface to maintainsaid squeegee said receptacle and a chamber the walls of which convergetoward said outlet, said nozzle also having a flared mouth, a squeegeemounted on said nozzle to the rear of said mouth, and a pair of inverted(Ll-shaped spring members directly connected to said nozzle adjustablysupporting said nozzle and squeegee to insure proper floor-engagement ofthe squeegee with the floor as said handle, receptacle and squeegee unitare moved along the floor.

I 3. In a floor mopping apparatus, a'receptacle, an air exhausterconnected to said receptacle, for producing and maintaining a partialvacuum therein, and a squeegee unit also connected to said receptacle,said unit including a nozzle having an inlet and an outlet in directcommunication with the interior of said receptacle for producing asuction through said nozzle, a squeegee associated with the inlet ofsaid nozzle to the rear thereof, and means at the inlet to said nozzleand forwardly thereof; independent of said exhauster for regulatin theflow action of liquid soil from the oor surface into said receptacle.

4. In a floor mopping apparatus, a receptacle, an air exhaustersupported by said re ceptacle, for producing and maintaining a partialvacuum therein, and a squeegee unit also supported by said receptacle,said unit including a nozzle having an oblong mouth wider at its centerthan at its sides and an outlet, a conduit leading from said outletdirectly into the interior of said receptacle, a squeegee mounted onsaid nozzle to the rear 0 said floor and directing the same toward thecenter of said mouth and outlet, and soil fiow control means in front ofsaid mouth.

5. In a floor mopping apparatus, a receptacle, an air exhausterconnected to said receptacle, for producing and maintaining a partialvacuum therein and a squeegee unit also connected to said receptacle,said unit including a nozzle having an oblong mouth and an outlet, aconduit leading from said outlet to the interior of said receptacle, a sueegee mounted on said nozzle to the rear 0% said mouth for collectingthe soil on the floor and directing the same toward the center of saidmouth and outlet, and a flap mounted on said nozzle in front of saidmouth and of lesser width than said squeegee, said flap having aplurality of openings therein for the admission of an to said nozzle.

6. In a floor mopping apparatus, a recep tacle, an air exhausterconnected to said receptacle, for producing and maintaining a partialvacuum therein, and a squeegee unit also connected to said receptacle,said unit comprising a hollow member having its interior of invertedV-shape with the walls converging to an outlet opening and having aninlet mouth, means for connecting said outmouth for collecting the soilon the! aeaaeea let to the interior of said receptacle, a squeegeemounted to the rear of said mouth and adapted to engage the floor tocollect the soil and direct it into said mouth and toward said outlet,and a flexible flap mounted in front of said mouth and of such width asto not normally engage the floor, said flap having a plurality ofopenings therein for the flow of air therethrough as a suction is set upin said nozzle.

7. In a floor mopping apparatus, a receptacle, an air exhausterconnected to said receptacle, for producing and maintaining a partialvacuum therein and a squeegee unit also connected to said receptacle,said unit comprising a hollow open bottom member having spaced front andback walls with a top wallconverging from the opposite ends toward anopening in the upper part of said back wall, means for connecting saidopening to the interior of said receptacle, a squeegee mounted on saidback wall, a flexible flap mounted on and extending along said frontwall from end to end and extending toward, but not to, the floor, saidflap having a plurality of air admission openings.

8. In a mopping apparatus, a soil-receiving receptacle, an exhauster, asqueegee, a connection between said squeegee and receptacle whichincludes a conduit leading from said squeegee to the interior of saidreceptacle at one end, said conduit having its inner receptacle endturned over and directed toward one side of the receptacle, and aconnection between said exhauster and receptacle which includes anexhaust passage in communication with said receptacle at the sideopposite the said inner end of said conduit.

9. In a mopping machine, a receptacle, a squeegee mounted at one end ofsaid receptacle, an exhauster, a conduit connecting said squeegee withthe interior of said receptacle,

the inlet to said conduit being at said squeege-v and its outlet beingat the end of the receptacle opposite said squeegee, its outlet endbeing turned over to discharge at one side of the receptacle, and meansfor connecting said exhauster, and the interior of said receptacle whichincludes a passage leading from the interior of said receptacle at theside opposite said conduit outlet.

10. In a mopping apparatus, a receptacle, a nozzle at one end of saidreceptacle, a squeegee supported by said nozzle, an exhauster at theother end of said receptacle, a conduit leading from said nozzle to theinterior of said receptacle at the end adjacent said exhauster, theinner end of said conduit being turned over horizontally to discharge atone side of the receptacle, and means for connecting said exhauster tothe interior of said receptacle including a laterally directed conduitin the exhauster end of said receptacle and having its inlet at the sideof said receptacle opposite said conduit inner discharge end. 1

11. In a mopping machine, an elongated soil-receivin g receptacle, meansfor producing a partial vacuum in said receptacle, a squeegee mounted onthe lower end of said receptacle and adapted to engage the floorsurface, a wheeled support upon which the lower end of said receptacleis pivotally mounted for rocking movement thereof relative to the floor,said squeegee by such rocking movement of the receptacle being normallyvariably engageable with the floorsurface, a handle mounted on the upperend of said receptacle opposite said squeegee and extendinglongitudinally away from said receptacle for propelling the receptaclealong upon its wheeled support, a connection between said receptacle andhandle permitting of longitudinal adjustment of the latter relative tosaid receptacle, and inverted U-shaped springs having their oppositeends secured to said wheeled support and said receptacle-and-squeegeeunit respectively comprising said pivotal connection between saidreceptacle and said wheeled support.

12. In floor mopping apparatus, a receptaele, means creating andmaintaining a partial vacuum in said receptacle, a nozz e memberconnected to and communicating with said receptacle, whereby a partialvacuum is produced in said nozzle, said nozzle having an inlet locatedadjacent the floor surface, a squeegee supported at the rear of andassociated with the inlet to said nozzle, and means located forwardly ofsaid nozzle and associated with the inlet thereof, and independent ofsaid vacuum-creating means, for aiding in the regulation of the flow ofliquid soil from the floor surface through the nozzle inlet into saidreceptacle.

In testimony whereof, I have subscribed my name.

WALTER S. FINNELL.

